Wearing your Political Colors on your Sleeve

(Source: www.endi.com)

The primary elections were held this past Sunday, and it was certainly quite an interesting experience. Apparently, in the past, many Puerto Ricans have shown up drunk at voting booths. So, lawmakers decided to pass a law prohibiting the sale of alcohol on both primary and election days. Hmm... Can't people just stock-up on booze the day before? Wouldn't it be more effective for election officials to turn away people who are obviously under the influence of alcohol, or some other illegal substance? Just a thought...

Anyway, Puerto Ricans do take politics very seriously. Everyone gets a day off on Election Day, which also falls on Nov. 14th. Like the U.S, there are just two major political parties here. If you're pro-U.S, you're on the Partido Nuevo Progresista (PNP) camp. The other is the Partido Popular Democrata, which is the party of the current governor, Anibal Acevedo Vila. As he has done a miserable job, most do not believe he'll be re-elected. After this Sunday's results, Luis Fortuño (pictured above, on the right) officially became the PNP's candidate for governor. Most people here are actually very open and direct, in terms of telling you about their political position. Politics is simply not a taboo topic, people will not hesitate in telling you who they voted for. Now this, I certainly find to be quite a difference from the American culture.